Business, state as partners?

Pennsylvania has far more transportation projects that need to get done than it has money for. In fact, the state is facing a $3.5 billion shortfall in government funding for transportation.

And since an overhaul in funding methods is unlikely to happen overnight at the federal or state level, Pennsylvania lawmakers are looking to what they say could be baby steps toward a fix.

One proposal in Harrisburg would allow the private sector to invest in Pennsylvania's transportation system through an arrangement called a public-private partnership, or P3.

The state House and Senate have passed separate bills and are expected to soon move forward on a combined measure.

While no one sees P3s as anything close to a solution, proponents say that inviting some private-sector money and creativity into the mix can be a step in the right direction.

"If you look at what we have now, it's nothing," said state Rep. Thomas R. Caltagirone, a Reading Democrat and one sponsor of the House version of the bill. "Something is better than nothing."

Funding shortfall

In Berks, the money available for PennDOT projects over each of the next four years is expected to be $15 million less than what's needed just to keep up with repairs.

New projects, such as widening Route 222 or redesigning the outdated West Shore Bypass, are even more unlikely.

Nearly a year ago, a commission assembled by Gov. Tom Corbett suggested a menu of potential funding boosters, including increases in the gas tax and vehicle registration and license fees.

Since then, Corbett has said very little about what measures he would favor, and lawmakers say they don't want to proceed without knowing what the governor would support.

In Washington, Congress has extended the five-year transportation funding bill that started in 2005 several times, but a long-term solution doesn't appear to be on the horizon.

Private investment

The P3 legislation would allow companies to build, maintain or improve a transportation asset - such as a highway or bridge - that it would lease from the state. The state would maintain control of the asset, but the company could make a profit from it.

That could happen a couple ways:

A company could finance a road project with a loan that the state would pay back, plus interest.

Or the company could set up a way to make money off the road directly, such as through tolling.

The idea is that private companies could do the work faster and cheaper than PennDOT. Also, they would have an incentive to find creative ways to get transportation projects done and make money from them.

"The private sector can have a habit of getting things done much quicker," said state Sen. John C. Rafferty Jr., a Montgomery County Republican who represents part of Berks.

Rafferty, who sponsored the Senate version of the bill, said he wouldn't want the partnerships to lead to tolls on existing highways such as Route 422, adding that legislative oversight of the process would prevent that. Instead, he'd rather see tolling reserved for new construction.

A Washington-area project, which has become a favorite example for public-private partnership advocates, would add toll-only lanes for commuters willing to pay.

But tolling is just one option, Rafferty said.

Companies also could lease other assets like highway rest areas, ports and train systems, which, if run privately, could free state transportation money to be spent elsewhere.

"We have it open for everything," Rafferty said.

Potential for Berks

Reading isn't the nation's capital so it's hard to imagine extra toll lanes on the West Shore Bypass generating enough money to be worth the investment.

And that could be a sticking point for bringing P3 projects to Berks, said Alan D. Piper, Berks County senior transportation planner. To attract private investment, a project needs to be able to turn a profit.

"Normally, when you're talking public-private, you're talking really big-picture stuff," Piper said. "It's a tool to put in the tool box, but it's certainly not the tool to give you the biggest bang for your buck as far as generating revenue for transportation."

Others, like Frederick C. Levering, transportation committee chairman of the Greater Reading Chamber of Commerce & Industry, see the chance to enable projects that might not otherwise happen, like the return of passenger rail service between Reading and Philadelphia.

The service would probably need to be subsidized, and the initial investment in the system would likely need to include some public money. But throwing private-sector dollars into the mix could push the project from pipe dream to reality, he said.

"You need the P3 in order to at least have it (private money) as an option," Levering said.